Tag Archives: Genesis 3:4

Note: I received the following write-up from someone in regards to a discussion on how we might work more effectively in sharing the Light of Christ to a broken world. It’s a very heartfelt letter on what our response should be in the face of difficult or tragic circumstances, which I now share with their permission. I hope you find it a blessing as much as I do!

I was wanting to write a few thoughts regarding a difficult incident I experienced one night a number of years ago. It was then that I was robbed at gunpoint with my young son nearby. After being held captive by this individual for several minutes, I was able to grab my boy and run across a four lane highway to safety – all while wondering if we’d be chased down as we ran. Thankfully, during the encounter, I was clear-headed enough to understand that the wisest course of action for this particular incident (out of concern for my son) would be to offer no resistance to the attacker.

During the time I had a gun in my back, I really did think about the possibility of being shot in the next few moments, and what this would be like for my son to witness. I prayed to the Lord, knowing that it – as all things in life are – was ultimately in His hands. Since then, I’m not going to lie, it hasn’t been easy whenever I recall those feelings or the face of the attacker. But it did gradually get better, which I owe to the many prayers of my friends and family, and to the watch-care of our Father.

A couple of verses I have found encouraging are Proverbs 18:10 (which was sent to me by a friend) and reads, “The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe.” I also found Genesis 3:4 to be of interest, and how the serpent said to Eve that if she ate of the fruit, she would know good and evil. As I look at the devastation and chaos of sin all around us – “knowing” evil has indeed wrought an unimaginably horrific toll upon this world. Sometimes it seems like it can be pretty easy to become calloused or dismissive of evil when there is so much in the news and in the newspaper. But then, like what happened when we were robbed, it became very personal for us. Thinking of the person who threatened me and my son – while I hope for justice, and safety for others who might encounter this dangerous individual and his cohorts – I also pray that he will come to know the Lord some day. Because let’s be honest. Reforming bad behavior starts with the heart. And the only way to truly change the heart is through Christ.

Furthermore, as that evening clearly demonstrated to me, there are no shades of gray – despite what a world apart from Christ might say. There’s right, and there’s wrong. As such, that night a couple years ago has served to powerfully reinforce that as a Christian, this life is no game. There are eternal stakes here. I’m as guilty as anyone about sometimes not taking on the responsibilities I should as a Christian – looking at a world gone mad on the television or in the papers – and shaking my head wondering why the Lord doesn’t intervene. But then, He already has. He’s intervened in my life, and in the lives of millions of others, through the power of His Spirit. Hope? Change? Purpose? Our world doesn’t know the true meaning. But as Christians, WE DO! May we all endeavor to work for Him in ALL spheres of life, and be ever more effective in sharing His Truth a world so desperately in need of the brighter tomorrow that only He can bring!

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